U of Ideas of General Interest -- March 2000
University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
Contact: Melissa Mitchell, Arts Editor, (217) 333-5491; [email protected]
JAPANESE ART
Gift of kimonos to new research center seen as seed of collection
CHAMPAIGN, Ill. -- Thanks to a gift from Tokyo's Habuki Kimono School to the University of Illinois' Japan House, art and design professor Kimiko Gunji's students will soon be learning all they ever wanted to know -- and more -- about the cultural and historical significance of the kimono.
On April 1, Japan House will celebrate the establishment of the Kimono Resource Center, which initially will serve as a repository for about a dozen kimonos donated by the Japanese school. Many of the kimonos are richly colored with elaborate, often hand-painted, details, and were designed to be worn at specific festivals or other occasions. The collection also includes examples of more humble styles, made of cotton and designed for everyday wear.
In addition to the kimonos, the gift -- initiated by the Habuki school's president, Takayoshi Mizushima -- includes a 25-volume video collection. Gunji said the videos "feature 100 different elements of kimono -- from dying and weaving of the material to hand-painting and discussions of appropriate footwear."
As director of Japan House, Gunji primarily promotes the Japanese arts -- tea ceremony, flower arranging and calligraphy among them -- through courses for university students. She also presents occasional workshops for community members, makes presentations for local schoolchildren and hosts public open houses at Japan House. Although she always has incorporated kimono-dressing demonstrations and other information about the garment into her lessons, Gunji said the addition of the on-site resource center will be a great instructional enhancement. She envisions the initial gift as the seeds of a collection, which she hopes will grow over time and may someday be available for loan to other institutions or displayed in traveling exhibitions.
The various types of kimonos now housed at the center and their functions:
-- Shichi-Go-San, brightly colored garments donned by young children as part of a Nov. 15 observance of the same name. On Shichi-Go-San, which translates as 7-3-5, boys -- age 3 or 5 -- and girls -- age 3 or 7 -- dress up in the special kimonos and visit the local shrine, where they give thanks for healthy growth and pray for good fortune.
-- Furisode, the most formal style of kimonos for women, distinguished by long, flowing sleeves. According to popular myth, the brightly colored, intricately designed furisode -- which literally means swinging sleeves -- were worn by women who would swing their sleeves to attract a young man's attention. The accompanying decorative sash, known as an obi, features a patterned design and is creatively tied to resemble butterflies, sparrows and other shapes.
-- Kuro-tomesode, a black garment that is the most formal style worn by married women. In contrast to the long, waving sleeves of the furisode, the kuro-tomesode features shorter sleeves and contrasting white designs of five family crests. It is worn with gold or silver sandals.
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